ajdown
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You can read it for yourself.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/stand...son's+handover+team+costs+£465,000/article.do
Consultants fees, basically. There aren't any more details available yet.
BorisWatch
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You can read it for yourself.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/stand...son's+handover+team+costs+£465,000/article.do
Consultants fees, basically. There aren't any more details available yet.
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
the button
out on the kocker
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
the button
out on the kocker
ajdown
Posting in this thread
HEIL IN A HANDCART
and the claim that the Congestion Charge is going to be extended as far west as ACHTUNG is completely unfounded?
the button
out on the kocker
editor
hiraethified
Yes he did deserve to run London. He was voted in by the London public, fair and square, so shut it, whiney boy.
ajdown
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Lazy Llama
Suburban robots that monitor reality
I'm just waiting for my New York-style crime map to drop through my letterbox.
scifisam
deleted
But what are they consulting about? Honestly, what exactly can be so difficult and expensive about this changeover? I know you probably don't have actual answers to hand, but I was hoping you could make guesses, at least.
ajdown
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My guess is probably having to analyse every policy that Ken decided on (such as the "Bus to Beijing"), and analyse everything to see whether the cost/benefit was worth it, or whether it conflicted with Boris' own plans in whatever area, then make recommendations as to how to best proceed.
Half a million might seem a lot, but when you compare it to the full Mayoral budget for the year (http://www.london.gov.uk/gla/budget/index.jsp) of £3,148,600,000 it's not that big an amount. My calculator can't even work out what percentage that is, it's so small.
The government agency DEFRA, on the other hand, spent £170 million on consultancy over 4 years (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6159194.stm) ... anyone here complaining about that?
Lazy Llama
Suburban robots that monitor reality
Manifesto:
I will make City Hall more accountable. Information about Mayoral advisors will be available on the web with their contact details and their register of interests will also be available online.
Article:
In a written answer, Boris Johnson said: "There are currently a number of consultants who are being paid to support the transition process but it is not intended that the fees for these individuals will be made public."
So it's going to be more accountable, apart from the bit where fees are concerned.
I will make City Hall more accountable. Information about Mayoral advisors will be available on the web with their contact details and their register of interests will also be available online.
Article:
In a written answer, Boris Johnson said: "There are currently a number of consultants who are being paid to support the transition process but it is not intended that the fees for these individuals will be made public."
So it's going to be more accountable, apart from the bit where fees are concerned.
scifisam
deleted
That doesn't sound like a good use of funds to me - but you're probably right that that's what they're doing.
You'll find that a lot of people here, myself included, dislike fees being wasted on pointless consultants no matter who's employing them. Though £170million for a whole agency over four years sounds like a bit of a bargain compared to £450,000 for one man for six months.
editor
hiraethified
He's already proved himself to be a lying shithawk unable to keep what few promises he served up at the election.
ajdown
Posting in this thread
Me too. I dislike consultants greatly - the two that I have had to deal with directly during my working life, one in my first job bankrupted the company, the second with my current employment has completely screwed up my job it now takes twice as long and has no tangiable benefits but as an old school chum of the CEO, his recommendations were adopted despite my concerns, and I was proven right.
£450,000 isn't on one person though - the article states it's a 15-strong team.
A spokesman for Mr Johnson said: "We have budgeted for a maximum of £465,000 over six months. We do not envisage all of these consultants being here for six months, some will become permanent members of staff and some will leave."
Assuming they're all on for the whole 6 months that's £62,000 per person per year ... not that excessive when you compare them to some of the city salaries. I know they aren't all going to be there for 6 months but it does bring the figures a bit more into perspective.
ajdown
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Details?
scifisam
deleted
Yup. Some consultants are good - they're just self-employed outside contractors brought in to do a specialised job - but management consultants seem to be simply money sinks.
The 'one person' was the Mayor, not the consultants.
cesare
shady's dreams ♥
Well, quite.
ajdown
Posting in this thread
http://www.london.gov.uk/gla/budget/index.jsp
Salaries for the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Assembly Members for the current financial year are as follows:
Mayor £137,579
Deputy Mayor £90,954
Chair of the Assembly £60,675
Assembly Members £50,582
Assembly Members who are also MPs £33,721 (from May 2008, £16,861)
scifisam
deleted
The Assembly's got nothing to do with the costs of the Mayoral changeover, though. So that's two people.
How is the deputy Mayor chosen? It's weird - you'd think the Deputy Mayor would be quite high profile, but I never heard of one under Ken (I expect there was one, but he/she must have been practically invisible).
Right, I went and looked it up. The Mayor chooses a member of the LA, so they are elected in a way - not to that post specifically, but then, neither are the cabinet.
This is interesting (from Wiki):
After Boris Johnson became Mayor in May 2008, he appointed Richard Barnes as his "statutory" Deputy Mayor, with the specific responsibility for community cohesion and regeneration. However, he also gave the title of Deputy Mayor to several other people, each with a specific role: Ian Clement (Government Relations); Kit Malthouse (Policing); and Ray Lewis (Young People).[4]
That doesn't sound like cutting down on bureacracy.
ajdown
Posting in this thread
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deputy_Mayor_of_London gives you all you want to know.
All about Ken's Deputy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Gavron
All about Ken's Deputy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Gavron
ajdown
Posting in this thread
Depends. Money spent on people at that high a level, with specific responsibilities towards areas identified as needing special attention, is not the same as having 100 penpushers all doing pointless stuff.
As for Ken...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Livingstone#Cronyism_and_corruption_allegations
In March 2002, while still independent, Livingstone was accused of "cronyism" by some Labour party members in the London Assembly after he had appointed six officials as special advisers at a salary level which seemed to them excessive, and a manoeuvre to help his chances of being re-elected. Livingstone denied the allegations and stated the appointments were a "necessary efficiency drive."[40]
In December 2007, the Evening Standard published news of an investigation into grants worth £2.5 million paid to organisations in which Ken Livingstone's adviser Lee Jasper was involved. It is confirmed that some of these grants were paid directly by the mayor's office. The independently audited and verified accounts detail grants paid with no quid pro quo, rental money paid to organisations already based in London Development Agency premises, and even threats of violence by grant recipients.
Source?
editor
hiraethified
Routemaster. Fourth plinth statue.
ajdown
Posting in this thread
http://www.dictatorofthemonth.com/Chavez/Jun2005ChavezEN.htm
http://www.fightthebias.com/Resources/Rec_Read/Dictator_In_The_Making.htm
http://www.breakthechain.org/exclusives/chavezcitgo.html
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/those-crazy-dictators/hugo-chavez-pc-magnate-269800.php
http://www.davidbruceallen.com/strategyoped/2007/05/hugo_chavezs_fi.html
http://alekboyd.blogspot.com/2007/02/dictator-hugo-chavez-to-give-up-to-32.html
http://media.www.dailytexanonline.c...on/Chavezs.Turn.Toward.Dictator-2700160.shtml
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/32491.html
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/victor_navasky/2007/06/chavez_tv.html
http://current.com/items/88857126_hugo_chavez_moves_his_tanks_to_border_as_regional_war_looms
Need more references to people calling Chavez a dictator?
snadge
metal alchemist
ultra christian fundamentalist RW rags proof do not make.
Chavez IS NOT a Dictator, most of the articles do not even mention that untruth.
one that does is an ultra right wing think tank, even then they do not accuse him of that, just allude that he could be, pick your sources a little better.
Yes. One serious site, not your bookmarked list of foamthing mouth far-right wankathons.
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
ajdown
Posting in this thread
So you only have two issues?
Buses
http://blogs.reuters.com/blog/2007/09/04/routemaster-boris/
"Conservative London mayoral hopeful Boris Johnson says that if elected he will try to bring back the Routemaster to London’s streets in a 21st-century form."
Note emphasis.
Trafalgar Square statue
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/art/2008/05/will_boris_johnson_ditch_the_f.html
"London will be the poorer if the new mayor replaces Trafalgar Square's revolving display of contemporary art with a statue of war hero Sir Keith Park"
Is the 'contemporary art' that plastic monstrosity? If so, then getting rid of that has to be a benefit. It's not art, it's utter shite.
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